Safe
by collegegirl2805
Summary: What if Toby's mom comes looking for him while he's in foster care after realizing that while he may not be safe with her, he's not exactly safe in foster care either. What will she do to insure the safety of her son? She's already lost one boy; can she bare to lose another one?
1. Chapter 1

The listener

Title: Safe

Summary: what if Toby's mom comes looking for him while he's in foster care and after realizing that while he may not be safe with her, he's not exactly safe in foster care either. What will she do to insure the safety of her son? She's already lost one boy; can she bare to lose another one?

Disclaimer: I do not and never have owned The Listener, even though I wish I owned season one, forget about the other season L

Author's note: Please leave comments cause I love them

Chapter 1

Toby was doing what he normally did on weekends; staying as far away from his foster home as possible. He could wait to be free of the system, he kept telling himself five more years, but sometimes that felt like a very long way away. He lived for his visits to Dr. Ray and the few opportunities were he could get away from people.

The noise was the worst for him, hearing everything from the people around him, and the more people there were the more noise there would be. Their thoughts would push their way through his defenses and he would be forced to hear exactly what people were thinking. He hated it, he had lived with it for thirteen years, his entire life and still he couldn't fully control his ability to read peoples minds.

Slowly he made his way to his favorite abandoned park and took a seat on one of the rusted swings on the playground. Swinging slowly he let himself close his eyes, as he tried to remember his life before foster care, but still the only thing he could remember was the same old memory replayed in his mind over and over. He had been in a small trailer watching his mother, he assumed, and his new baby brother when a man came in and took Toby's baby brother away, then his mother had told him he needed to jump, jump into the water and that his name was Toby Logan now.

What Toby would give to be with his mother now, instead of in foster care being bounced from one foster home to another. He had been told it could be worse he could be in a facility, those were supposed to be the worst. Then again, his life could be a lot better. The foster home he was in now was one of the worst he had ever had. There he was forced to play personal maid and was beaten almost everyday.

Toby hated coming home everyday and hearing that mans thoughts. They were almost impossible to ignore. Michael Helprin was the angriest abusive man Toby had ever met, every thought he had came with a wave of anger. Sometimes the man's thoughts were so overwhelming that they would incapacitate Toby leaving him with what felt like a massive migraine.

Toby had asked Ray time and time again how to block out the man's thoughts, but Ray's suggestions never seemed to help. So now this was his life, he spent his time either as far away from his foster home as possible or cleaning the house or in some kind of pain.

* * *

Toby's thoughts were put on hold as he sensed the presence of another person entering the park, which was odd because no body ever came there, not in the past six months he'd lived in Newbery. Try to act casual, he got up from the swing and started to wonder over to where the thoughts seemed to originate. There at the parks entrance were two men. They were looking around the park, like they were trying to find someone. While Toby had felt their presence before, he couldn't pick up exactly what they were thinking. He thought about getting closer, but something told him he should stay put out of sight.

For some reason these men made Toby nervous. What did Toby have to be nervous about? Toby was just some foster kid. Unless maybe they had come for him; the thought made his gut twist into knots. Was that possible? The only person Toby had ever told about his ability was Ray, and Toby trusted Ray more than any one else in the world.

Suddenly Toby felt a hand clamp around his mouth. 'Oh god they were here for me! What am I going to do?' Toby thought. He was freaking out, but before he tried to scream, he realized something strange. He could hear the thought of the person behind him! How was that possible? He didn't know why, but the knowledge that this person's thoughts were shielded from him was a comfort.

Slowly, very slowly he twisted around… 'Holy shit!' he was dumbfounded because the person before him was someone he had seen before. The memory was from so long ago it felt like a dream, but he knew this woman. She had his eyes, or maybe he had hers, they were blue just like his! And she had his color hair, dark brown. She was exactly as he had remembered him, and he involuntarily let out a gasp of air. Could this woman be…was she his mother? The woman he had dreamt about for so long?

Then a current of thought came at him. She was projecting her thoughts to him, 'Toby… I know you have a lot of questions, but we have to move. We're in danger. Those men are looking for you, but I wont let them take you!' the last part of the women's thought came out almost as a yell. 'You have to follow me and try to be as quiet as possible. I'm going to take you somewhere safe.'

If anyone else had asked him to do it, he wouldn't have, but this was his mother. He had wanted her for so long and he couldn't let go of her for a second time. Toby reluctantly nodded his ascent. He knew that his foster parents would be angry, but he couldn't find it in his heart to really care. The only person, who he felt guilty for leaving was Dr. Ray, but he would have to understand. Toby was going to be with his mother now.

Suddenly, the woman grabbed his hand and in a haze he ran with her. To where, Toby wasn't sure he cared.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not and never have owned The Listener, even though I wish I owned season one, forget about the other seasons

Chapter 2

Toby was with his mom, his BIOLOGICAL mom. Well, she hadn't actually confirmed that form him, but that was probably because they hadn't exactly had that much time to talk. They had been running for over an hour, and even though Toby was pretty sure no one was following them anymore, he was pretty sure this woman had no intention of stopping until they reached whatever destination she had in mind.

Toby's lungs were killing him and there was a painful stitch in his side. He couldn't help feeling a little embarrassed that a girl was outpacing him right now. But in his defense she was like a head taller than him. Okay that was a pretty sucky excuse, but seriously he had been running for an hour. He wasn't sure if he could go much further.

Turning his head slightly, Toby realized the woman was watching him out of the corner of her eye. 'Shit,' he thought, she can read my mind. That was going to be awkward seeing has Toby had never really been that good and containing his thought, maybe the woman could teach him how she shielded her thoughts.

"So…getting tired there?" the woman asked with an amused smile, and a sparkle in her eyes.

"Well…I guess," god he could barely even speak, "I'm…a little…tired."

That made the woman laugh out load and she tapped her head, "sorry, but there's no lying to me," Toby's blushed and he was suddenly thankful that his face was already red from the exertion of running.

"Don't worry, we're almost there," she muttered.

"Almost…where?" Toby asked, unable to contain his curiosity.

"You'll see," well that was a helpful answer, the woman smiled, clearly responding to his thoughts and then she picked up her pace, 'oh god what is she trying to do, kill me?' Toby thought as he tried to keep pace with her.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

After another twenty minutes, the woman's pace finally began to slow. Toby would have sighed in relief if he had had the energy. Then he saw what they seemed to be walking towards, it was a farm with the whole nine yards. There were chickens, cows, horses, and even a few pigs, and a ways away there were rows upon rows of wheat. So the woman had taken him to a far. Turning to him with a smile, she asked, "How about some food, rest, and answers?"

'Answers?' Toby thought. Yes, he wanted answers, his head was spinning with questions he wanted resolved.

"Okay, now don't get carried away. The situation is kind of complicated and it's going to be hard to explain, but I'll try my best. I also have a few surprises for you. How about we go inside and you meet a few friends?" she asked grinning at Toby.

Toby could feel excitement bubbling in his chest. Were there more people like them inside the white walls of that farmhouse in the distance? Before he could walk any further, the woman stopped him. "My friends…well their a little skittish, so we're going to wait for them to come out and see us. I'm sire by now they've heard us. No offense, but you're pretty loud, we can fix that though," Toby raised his eyebrows realizing she was referring to his thoughts.

Then Toby noticed movement to his left and turned, to find himself facing a man in his thirties with curly blonde hair and a face that looked oddly familiar. The man seemed to be openly staring at Toby, his eyes wide and his mouth gapping. Okay…Toby wondered if he had something gross on his face or something, and absently touched his face to make sure. "That's not why I'm staring," muttered the man. 'Great, just great, another mind reader," he thought. He was beginning to understand how other people might feel if they realized Toby was reading their minds. Toby never really had thoughts he would want to hide, but it still felt annoying to have people listening in on his thoughts.

"It's okay Toby, remember, I'm gonna help you fix that," the woman said nonchalantly.

Trying to ignore her and forget the irritation he was starting to feel, Toby looked back at the man curiously. "So if you're not staring because I've got something on my face, then why?"

The man coughed awkwardly and looked down at his hands. "Umm…Maya why don't we talk inside?" he asked, still not looking up from his hands. At this point Toby was more than a little frustrated, he had always been able to know what people were thinking, but with these people he knew nothing.

"Well…I would have before, but I didn't want to make anyone jumpy. Are Seth, Evan, and Jenny still here? Oh… what about Michael I've missed him?"

"Mmmm… more or less than you missed me?" he asked in a tone that made Toby unsure if the man was joking or serious.

"Just joking," the man answered Toby's unspoken question. Jeez that was getting annoying.

Together they made their way to house both Maya and the man constantly sneaking looks at Toby every now and again. When they entered more people met them, and naturally Toby couldn't hear any of their thoughts either. He was beginning to realize just how much he had come to rely on his powers.

The man stopped in front of the others and they gave him knowing looks. "Well introductions I think are in order," stated the man. "So you can stop calling me the man in you're head," he said smiling. Toby glared at him, but sighed letting it go.

"Anyway…" the man started, "this hear is Michael," he pointed to a tall man with brown eyes and short black hair, who gave Toby a wink. "This is Seth, he's a little older than you Toby, eighteen," well that was five years, Toby was a little jealous, he always wanted to be eighteen, so he could finally be allowed to take care of himself. The boy before him wore a gentle smile, he was tall and gangly with thick black curls, hazel eyes, and a really pale completion. Despite his jealous, he felt the warmth of the guy and like him right away. "This over here is Evan," Evan looked to be in his late forties and a little plump, but despite his soft exterior he had hard ice blue eyes that told Toby he didn't want to get on Evan's bad side. "And last, but certainly not least, this is Jenny," the man said. 'Wow,' Toby couldn't help thinking. Jenny was tall and elegant with wavy blonde hair and blue eyes, she looked like she could easily be a model, he gave her a small shy smile and looked back to the man, who still hadn't given Toby his name. "Oh right, I'm Jamie, and well…" he looked down again, "I'm also you're dad Toby."

'WHAT?' Toby noticed that everyone in the room seemed to flinch at the reaction to his thought, but he couldn't stop his thoughts from running rampant. He couldn't remember having a dad, not ever. Now as Toby looked Jamie over, he noticed why he thought Jamie looked so familiar, they had the same face!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not and never have owned The Listener, even though I wish I owned season one, forget about the other season

Chapter 3

A few minutes later, Toby found himself seated at large wooden kitchen table, nursing a root beer, and wishing for something stronger. Okay, he had never actually drank anything stronger, but still…

Sitting across from him, looking wary sat his…dad? That sounded weird, he couldn't really wrap his head around the fact that he had a dad. He had never had anyone before, except for Ray, and now Toby was in the same room as both his parents. Everything felt so, weird, and he had trouble taking it all in.

One question that kept on plaguing him was, why had his parents left him? That question had often tormented him through his years in the system. Sure he remember the man, who had taken his baby brother away, but still that didn't help with any of his questions.

Toby heard a soft cough and looked up; meeting his…father's… eyes for the first time since the beans had been, well, spilled. "Well…now that you've had some time to let the news sink in…" Jamie paused, clearly unsure of himself, "why don't we answer some of those burning questions you have Toby?"

'God is he still seriously reading my mind,' Toby thought knowing full well that Jamie could hear what he was thinking. Toby was pretty sure Jamie could tone Toby out if he wanted to. Whatever… Toby needed to forget about the lack of privacy for a second. There were a lot of questions he wanted answered and he was sure that if he didn't get some answers soon he would burst.

"So, just to clarify…" Toby looked to his…mother?

"Yup, I'm your mom," stated Maya nonchalantly; like it was no big deal, Toby could feel his irritation grow. The news may not be a big deal to Maya, but it was a huge freaking deal to Toby! "I didn't mean to say it like that, sorry," whispered Maya, looking embarrassed.

"Whatever," muttered Toby trying to be cool. "So why did you come back. Why now?"

He had directed the question to Maya, but it was Evan, who answered, "Toby," he said softly, allowing some warmth into his icy blue eyes, "There are some people… bad people… who want people like you…people like us. They're part of an organization called The Institute, and they're the reason you're mom left you," he stated. "Basically, they look for people with abilities. They take these people, with the desire to use them for both monetary and scientific purposes, not seeing them as human beings, but as objects to be used. Unfortunately, all of us have had the misfortune of visiting The Institute. About, well, fifteen years ago, we escaped… and have been on the run ever since. They're powerful and have great influence in the government, which is why those of us, who escaped, decided to come together to fight back," Toby noted the anger and determination in Evan's voice, as he spoke of fighting.

Looking straight at Toby, Evan added, "the world we live in is dangerous atmosphere for children," his meaning was clear to Toby. He was trying to say that Toby's parents gave him up to protect him.

"So…if it's so dangerous. Dangerous enough for you guys to…send me away, why am I here?" Toby asked. He was pretty sure he knew the answer, but wanted to confirm his theory.

This time it was Maya, who answered him, "they found you," she whimpered. "I…I was almost to late…they almost got you," she looked like she was about to start hyperventilating, and Toby felt his heart ache, both Jamie and Jenny started to rub Maya's back reassuringly, while Toby sat motionless, taking in the scene.

"I don't…know…what I would have done…if they got him too," Maya sobbed into Jamie's shoulder. All of a sudden, Maya stopped crying and looked around at everyone at the table, "I wont leave him again," she looked around daring anyone to disagree with her. Then Maya looked back at Toby, "I won't leave you again. You'll stay with me now," she said it with such conviction…Toby didn't know how to react, so he just nodded, slowly. All of a suddenly, he felt very small, like a little kid again, and he got a warm fuzzy feeling. He couldn't remember ever feeling this way before, cared for.

"Maya…" murmured Evan quietly, "we can send Toby to one of the compounds. He would be safe, we need you here…we need you're help…" Evan trailed off, obviously realizing that Maya's icy glare meant he wasn't going to get anywhere with his idea. While Toby didn't want to leave his mother, he was interested in the compounds Evan had referred to.

Suddenly she spoke, seemingly furious and her whispered words dripped with anger, "haven't I given enough…fifteen years. Losing one son to The Institute and another to foster care," then she started shouting. "Haven't I sacrificed enough!"

Toby was still frozen in his seat, hand clamp tightly around his root beer bottle and his mouth slightly ajar. Then, thank god, Jamie cut in, "Maya…I understand how you feel. You not the only one, who suffered," he reached over and gave her a tight hug. Toby noticed that as Jamie looked into Maya's eyes something seemed to pass between them, and she gave him a tight nod.

Releasing Maya, Jamie sat up and looked around the room, "I think it best we all take a break. Well finish this later…but I do agree with Maya about one thing. From now on Toby will stay with us." Us Toby wondered?

Now looking at Evan, Jamie said, "Evan, you can't expect us to let Toby go, not now that The Institute is looking for him."

Finally, Jamie looked to Toby, "Toby…I think it's time you get some rest, you've had a long day and I think we've given you a lot to think about," that was putting it mildly, Toby's head was spinning with everything he had just learned. "Come I'll show you where you'll sleep." With that Jamie rose from the table and wearily Toby followed. Right now, sleep sounded really good to Toby.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not and never have owned The Listener, even though I wish I owned season one, forget about the other season

Chapter 4

The next morning Toby wake with a start, glancing at his watch and then jumping out of bed. Oh no, it was nine o'clock. He was late for school, he hadn't done any house work. He was in so much trouble, he could feel himself start to hyperventilate. Why hadn't his alarm woke him up?

Then he stopped, realizing this was not his room, and slowly all of the events from the day before came back to him, and he flopped back down on the bed. He wasn't with the Helprin's in foster care anymore. He…he was with his mother and father…with other mind readers. The revelation was almost to much for him and he lay there trying to mule everything over, to try and let it all sink in.

There was so much to think about… there was his mom, Maya, and his dad, Jamie. From what he could remember from last night, it seemed like they actually cared about him. Maya…his mom…had freaked out when the others had even suggested she leave him. The memory made his heart swell with emotion, his mother wanted him and his father had agreed, he didn't want to leave Toby either. Toby had a mom and dad, who loved him for the first time he could remember, and it was hard to believe.

But just because Toby had parents now didn't mean he was safe. He thought back to how Maya had panicked at the thought of The Institute getting Toby. The Institute, even the name sounded ominous, and it freaked Toby out. Even though Toby had hated foster care, there the worst he had to fear was being placed with people like the Helprin's. Now he had the threat of The Institute hanging over him and it made his stomach flip. The way the others had talked about it, had made his skin crawl, and his baby brother was probably still trapped there…

Finally, Toby's thoughts went to Evan's mention of the compounds and he wondered how many other mind readers like him were out there. He couldn't welsh his desire to want to meet them all. He had hated being alone with his gift and now there were all these people just like him and he wasn't alone anymore. The thought made him smile, for so long he had been alone, but not anymore.

Before Toby could get any further with his thoughts, there was a knock on the door. Sitting up and trying to compose himself the best he could he squeaked, "come in."

When Jamie came in Toby's heart beat a little fast; that was his dad. The thought almost made him giddy. 'Damn,' he thought all of a sudden looking down embarrassed, 'they still know exactly what I'm thinking.'

Looking back at Jamie, Toby noticed Jamie was smiling at him. "Kid, trust me, if you could hear all of my thoughts right now… Well, let's just say, the feels mutual…I never wanted to leave you. Umm, actually I only found out about you when you were already in foster care," Toby was perplexed when he saw a flash of anger in the man's eyes. "She…she wouldn't tell me where you were when she told me about you," Jamie took a deep breath, "but that's in the past now, okay?"

Toby nodded, a little shocked by this revelation. "Anyway, I was wondering… if you wanted to learn how to hide you're thoughts before we went downstairs. It takes a little bit of practice, but it's not too tough, once you get the hang of it," Jamie looked unsure of himself, when he spoke.

Toby nodded excitedly, "yes please," he added with vigor.

Jamie smirked, "guess you're getting tired of everyone in you're head," Jamie mussed.

"Yeah," Toby agreed, "but now I guess I understand how other people would feel if they knew I was reading their thoughts. It's not that I want to keep anything from you guys, but it'd be nice to have some privacy."

"Well okay then, let me explain what you have to do. It's pretty easy. You just have to be a little more aware of yourself. It's like when you're reading other people and you feel their thoughts. Just do the same with your own mind and then try to create a wall between you're self and the people around you. This should also help you block out the thoughts of other people." For the next thirty minutes, Toby and Jamie worked together, and by the end Jamie was clearly impressed.

"That's great Toby. That's the fastest I think I've seen anyone learn how to do that."

"Thanks," Toby murmured, blushing. "I guess I had a lot of motivation," he added.

"Well…I guess you did. What's better motivation, then a house full of mind readers?" he said with a laugh.

After Jamie left, Toby got dressed quickly in a shirt and jeans Seth had lent him the night before. To say the clothes were a little big would be a huge understatement. Looking down at himself, Toby laughed a little at himself. With a shrug he walked downstairs, trying to keep the jeans around his waste. If he didn't find a belt soon he'd be in trouble.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Why don't I own The Listener. I guess its cause I'm just not cool enough. Oh well, I guess, we can't have everything. I DON'T OWN THE LISTENER OR IT'S CHARACTERs. Sniff, sniff :(

Chapter 5

Toby walked into the kitchen with a big grin on his face, excited to show of his new ability to block his thoughts from the rest of the mind readers. He watched in an amused silence, as one by one, everyone in the kitchen turned to stare at him. He couldn't help, laughing out loud when he saw Evan's mouth fall open in amazement.

"Damn," sighed Seth, "it was fun being able to listen to someone's thoughts again. I feel like I just lost TV privileges," Seth wined, jokingly.

"Yeah," Toby smiled, no longer upset about his past lack of privacy, "well, you won't get them back any time soon, I can promise you that young man," he scolded in a comically authoritative voice and everyone started to laugh.

"Sorry, kid," Michael stated, "but you're the bossy persona makes you look pretty adorable."

Toby was mortified and spluttered, "me, adorable…cool maybe…awesome, of course, but I am NOT, N-O-T, adorable," he could feel the blood rush to his face, unable to hide his blush of embarrassment, which just made everyone else laugh harder.

Finally, Evan spoke, "okay, guys stop teasing the poor kid, you're making him blush," at the mention of his blushing, Toby felt more blood rush to his face. He was actually debating weather or not to leave the room, but instead, decided to ignore them all. Walking over to the kitchen's wooden cabinets he found himself a bowl and went to pour himself some cereal.

After what felt like forever, the others stopped and also began to dig in to their breakfasts. Then Evan glanced at Toby and in a low deep voice, stated, "I'm impressed kid. I don't think I've every seen someone learn to shield their thoughts so quickly."

The comment made Toby's chest swell with pride, "thanks my…Jamie taught me," he muttered shyly, looking up he was surprised to find a look of disappointment on Jamie's face. "I mean my dad," Toby whispered, awkwardly. Trying to relieve the tension he was now feeling, he looked back at Evan, "I had a lot of initiative, what with everyone here being able to hear everything I was thinking…"

"Well, even with that initiative, it still took me a while to block people. Trust me, the fact you learned to make barriers in you're mind so quickly is pretty impressive," he gave Toby a wink, while Toby felt a slight blush grace his face again. Damn he was going to have to work on the blushing.

"Thanks," Toby whispers again, while he pushes his corn pops around his bowl absently.

"Well," Maya says, getting everyone's attention, "I think it's time to talk about where Toby and I…"

Jamie looks up and states, "I'm going wherever Toby goes," an angry flare enters his eyes, "he's my kid, you can't take him away from me again, Maya. You owe me," he finishes with a meaningful glare.

"Fine," Maya growled angrily, "I think it's time to talk about where Toby, _Jamie_, and I go from here." While Toby, had come to accept his parents feelings for him it was still strange to see the two actually fighting over being with him. Honestly, he wasn't sure how he felt about it. On the one hand, he liked that they cared about him, but on the other, he wasn't really used to feeling cared about and it made him feel a little uncomfortable.

Evan, who Toby had realized was clearly the leader in the group, spoke up, "Well, let's think about our options okay? Now, I'm not going to tell you what to you. The way I see it is you don't really have too many choices. You could try the whole cover thing, get yourselves some false identities and settle down, but that probably wouldn't last. We all know how good The Institute is at sniffing out listeners…they have a lot of practice," he mumbles sadly. "You guys could all go live in one of the compounds, but I'm guessing you, Maya, wont want to do that…" there was a long silence, before Evan spoke up again. "Well, I think the best choice for you guys would be to just stay here, until you can find a better alternative…"

All of a sudden, Toby felt the need to speak up. "Why can't we go live in a compound…I mean, it sounds kind of cool. Isn't it just some place where mind… I mean listeners live?" he asked.

Maya looked a little angry, "No…well, yes, but the compounds," Maya paused thinking. "In theory, Toby, the compounds sound great, but there not really all not safe. The fact of the matter is it's dangerous to live in those compounds. The Institute is always searching for listeners and they know about the compounds. Every once in a while, the compounds are raided. Sometimes the listeners escape in time, but most of the time…" she looks down sadly, unable to finish the sentence, but Toby's pretty sure he knows what happens to those people.

"Okay, but can't we visit. I mean I want to meet other people like us. I'm not asking to live there, but I can't we visit?" Toby knows he's whining, but he doesn't care. The thought of meeting more people like him, a whole community, fills him with a giddy excitement.

Jamie looks at Toby and then gives Maya a meaningful look before responding, "well, I suppose we can visit, there is a compound pretty close to here," Toby practically jumps for joy even doing a little victory dance, which results in a renewal in of laughter from the grown ups around him.

"Okay," Maya reaffirms after the laughter dies down. "Well visit one of the compounds, but as far as the living situation. I think Evan's right, as hard as that is to admit, I think until we can find somewhere safer, this old farm house is where we'll have to stay."

"Maya, please, I know the thought of living with us is exciting, but try and contain yourself," Jenny adds with a smirk.

"Well, I don't think she's excited to live with all of us, right Maya?" Seth chips in, giving Jenny a sideways glance.

"The truth is, Seth she's only stay for me," Michael says with a goofy smile, as he wiggles his eyebrows at Maya. Toby notes the death glare Jamie is aiming at Michael.

'This is gonna be interesting,' Toby thinks to himself, smiling.


End file.
